bee creative

comfort

It's been a cold October. 

I had to wait over a month to have my fireplace fixed (the pilot light went out and I couldn't restart it). 

I refuse to use the baseboard heaters unless it's below freezing. 

Warmth, I've been cold too many times to take if for granted. 

Tonight's dinner: zucchini and onions cooked in olive oil, topped with roasted cherry tomatoes and some Parmigiano-Reggiano (one of the few things I buy that isn't local).

I have one more zucchini, about 2 cups of zucchini that I dehydrated and then that's it until next year.

Zucchini is a seasonal food for me.

There might still be a few tomatoes at the farmer's market next week but maybe not.  It's very close to the end of fresh tomatoes. They have that end of the year taste now. Not quite as sweet.  A clean, slightly astringent flavor. 

I'll eat what I've dehydrated or froze and that will be it until next summer as well. 

Every bite is a bit of good-bye until next year; finding comfort in the next season. 

 

wool weather

This morning sunshine... The moon on the horizon. 

Tonight, heavy rain. Very unlikely to see the moon in the sky or stars to wish on. 

A zero waste project. 

The top layer is the batting from a wool comforter that felted beyond practical use as a blanket.  It was a gift from Mom and Dad probably 25-30 years ago. 

The next layer wool from Jude.

And then a bottom layer of wool I felted. 

After it's dry there will be more stitching and then...

well that's to be continued.

cauliflower...no matter how it's cooked

If I were being trendy I'd call this cauliflower rice. 

It's not rice. 

It doesn't have to be rice. 

It just tastes good....

Cauliflower chopped up in the food processor, fried in a bit of olive oil + red pepper + yellow beans + chicory and a sprinkle of pepper. 

altered and not

Altered... 

And not.

Think I'm done being silent. 

It's been the most beautiful October that I can remember. 

Sunny, a few record warm days (around my preferred temp of 70 F), cold nights. 

Fog the last couple days. 

There has been some making.

A new pair of mitts, knit primarily on the bus.

Some dyeing.

A lot of thinking and journal writing. 

Some long walks.

A lot of cooking. 

Quinoa + carrots + zucchini + ginger + beans + chicken + green salad.

After over a month of avoiding wheat, dairy and sugar I'm re-introducing wheat and dairy in limited amounts and sugar in very limited amounts.  In many ways I feel better than I have in a long time and I don't want that to change. 

Altered. 

But I also really miss cheese.  More than anything. 

Going along with the theme of altered, a song that fits the day...

 

 

silence

I fell into silence again.

Maybe it's the darkness. The days are definitely shorter.  I am very aware this time round that we are in the dark of the moon. 

There is a small garbage can full of walnuts fermenting away on the back deck.  Lid tightly closed to keep the squirrels out. 

Silk shirt (purchased at thrift store for 5 dollars) dyed in sumac. 

I also found a pair of white jeans that promptly went into a not working so well indigo vat, followed by a dip in the walnuts, and then after drying out a bit; is now back in the walnut vat. 

On the left is a tank top that I made, dyed in the indigo vat (with better results but splotchy) that also took a dip in the walnuts.  It's still drying on the line and will be washed soon. 

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Several years ago I bought a copy of A Book of Silence by Sara Maitland.  I've dived in and out of it but haven't read the whole thing yet.  I think it's time to start.  A part that caught my attention...

"But the horizon line of the hills abided...  Whenever I sat to meditate, there was the clear, clean line that divides earth and sky and also unites them.  That line was constant.  It emerged out of the dark in the first dawn light and was swallowed back into the dark at nightfall.  Above the line, infinity, below the line, mortality.  But the line itself was both and held them both, and the wind blew along it, fresh and free like the passage of the spirit." 

This wasn't the quote that I went looking for this morning, but after seeing Jude's post today, seemed most appropriate. 

 

dinner

I want to remember this one.

Zucchini noodles + red peppers + onions + potatoes. 

 

apple time!

I've been picking apples.

And making...

Applesauce.

And apple oat biscuits...

The recipe is here (Green Kitchen Stories) and I will be making it again. 

And apple cake.  One of my favorites.

I'm cutting back on dairy, wheat, and sugar so a few tweaks were made to the recipe. Instead of wheat flour I used amaranth, brown rice and oats. I replaced the cane sugar with coconut sugar and used fresh grated ginger instead of candied ginger.

It tasted just as good but I need to work on the baking time a bit.  I ended up burning the edges a bit.